Companies

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what was(a) the total cost of administration of companies registration offices in Great Britain in the year 1987–88, (b) the total revenue from fees charged by companies registration offices in Great Britain in the year 1987–88, and (c) the sum of profit or loss resulting from the difference between (a) and (b).

Provisional figures for 1987–88 show that expenditure on a memorandum trading account basis at the companies registration offices amounted to £21 million. Fees and charges to cover these costs, together with a contribution towards the costs of running a system of registered companies, amounted to £28 million in the same period.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what was the total number of company searches carried out at each of the public search rooms in Great Britain, and by the postal search services at each office, during the year 1987–88.

The number of searches carried out during the period at the London, Cardiff and Edinburgh search rooms was 3,021,000, 872,000 and 206,000 respectively. In addition, the Cardiff and Edinburgh offices handled 58,000 and 8,000 postal searches respectively.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is the total of inspection fees collected for inspections carried out at each of the public search rooms of companies registration offices and at each of the postal sales units.

The total of inspection fees collected in 1987–88 was £3.8 million of which £0.8 million was collected at Cardiff, £2.9 million at London and £0.2 million at Edinburgh. Income from postal searches amounted to £130,000 at Cardiff and £20,000 at Edinburgh.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster whether the postal sales service of
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company information which was introduced by companies registration offices in December 1983 is accommodated within the existing buildings of companies registration offices.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what additional recurring costs, apart from staff costs, have been incurred by companies registration offices as a result of the introduction of the postal sales service for company information in 1983.

Provisional figures for 1987–88 show that the cost of maintaining the Companies House facility in London on a memorandum trading account basis was £4.4 million. These costs exclude those services at Cardiff which support this facility.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what was the number of company searches carried out at each of the companies registration offices in Great Britain on behalf of Departments of Her Majesty's Government during the year 1987–88; if such services are charged to the requesting Department; and if he will make a statement.

In 1987–88 some 176,000 searches were carried out for the CROs' own working purposes and those of other parts of the Department of Trade and Industry. Searches for other Government Departments attract the normal search feee and are, therefore, not always separately identified, but total at least 68,000.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is the number of staff employed in directly meeting the requests for company information, as opposed to collecting and collating company records, at(a) each of the public search rooms and (b) each of the units handling the postal sales services.

The number of staff (full-time equivalents) employed in the CROs, as at March 1988, in meeting requests made for company information at London, Cardiff and Edinburgh were 282, 68 and 12 respectively. For postal sales services from Cardiff and Edinburgh the numbers were 18.5 and 2 respectively.

The number of companies registered in England and Wales and in Scotland at the end of the financial year 1987–88 was 1,063,811 and 53,706 respectively. A number of these were either in liquidation or in course of removal from the register, leaving the number regarded as "active" as 880,000 and 47,000 respectively.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what was the total number of new companies registered at each companies registration office in Great Britain in the year 1987–88, and the total number registered in each case with a total paid-up capital of £100 or less during the same period.

The number of new companies registered at the Cardiff and Edinburgh offices in 1987–88 was 120,000 and 6,300 respectively. An analysis of paid-up capital is not yet available, but the number of new companies with a nominal capital of £100 or less is estimated to have been 47,600 and 3,200 respectively.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what is the number of microfiches required to carry the average company records at companies registration offices in Great Britain; and what is the material cost of reproducing a single microfiche at companies registration offices.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what are the significant elements in his calculation that an increase in company search fees is necessary at companies registration offices; and how each proposed new charge for the company search services was arrived at.

The main elements of search service costs include staff, equipment, accommodation and overheads. The new fees have been set at a level to ensure that the income received will cover the full costs of providing the services.

Search fees have remained unaltered since 1981. For some time the income from these services has fallen short of the costs of delivering them. The new fees have been set at a level designed to ensure that, taking one year with another, the income received will cover the costs of the services involved.

To ask the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster what was the level of the statutory search fee at each of the companies registration offices' public search rooms in 1978 and 1983; and what is the proposed figure for 1989.